Title: Charon’s Daughter
Author: Robert Reinarts
Publisher: Robert Reinarts
ISBN: 979-8890917850
Pages: 375
Genre: Historical Fiction
Reviewer: Christina Avina
Hollywood Book Reviews
History is the greatest teacher which people can learn from in this modern age. Seeing the path so many have taken before, and where those choices have brought not only individuals but entire nations and world powers to various outcomes is a great way to make different choices today. This has helped advance things like equality for all, and while this is a lesson that continues to be learned, it is through history that people can understand what hasn’t worked and why change is needed to make things work in the present.
It is that lesson which drives author Robert Reinart’s book Charon’s Daughter. The story follows a young woman named Shannon, who is recruited by a freshly appointed President Lincoln in an act of espionage at the start of the Civil War. After several failed assassination attempts against him, the President sees an opportunity through Shannon to not only give women more of a role in the military, but to root out the players hiding in the shadows as the war begins to mount. Fighting sexism and racism on multiple fronts, Shannon and other players begin a game of cat and mouse as the war is fought on both the front lines and behind the scenes.
Compelling is the first reaction readers will have to this tale. The author does an incredible job of world building and character growth in this story, shifting perspectives between the protagonist and other prominent players in both the story and the war itself. The strong language and harsh realities emphasized in this novel highlighted the cruel nature of this particular era of history, and the imagery and tense atmosphere the author brought to each chapter helped bring these memorable landmarks during the Civil War to life in vivid detail.
Readers who enjoy historical fiction, especially those who delve into the Civil War era of American history and infuse modern ideas and dynamics into the story will especially love this novel. The way the protagonist challenges the norm of that era for women by proving herself time and time again as a leader amongst men during the war and the way other characters challenged the way people, especially Southern people viewed those in the black community, make the strong themes and dynamics of this story more important and infused into the backbone of who these characters were, for good and for bad.
The balance of action, tension, and history all elevated the strength of this protagonist and the importance of the themes as they continue to make an impact today.